Production of heat and smudge.



PATENTED MAR. 6, 1906. G. GRIFFITHS. PRODUCTION OF HEAT AND SMUDGE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 10, 1905.

,1)? 0617102" Gear 1 6' G11 fifgs UNITED STATES PATENT 'oFFroE I GEORGE GRIFFITHS, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

PRODUCTION oF HEATnAND SMUDGE.

Specification of Letters l atent.

:atented March 6, 19cc.

I all whom it concern; Be it known that I. GEORGE GRIFFITHS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los IO vide for the. production of heat andsmud e in orchards at times when the latter are liab e b to be damaged by frosts, the said heat and smudge being produced in's'uch manner as to 'p'rovi e a'maxlmum of protection in the most convenient and economical manner.

A further object of the invention is to rovide for the roduction of a smudge w 'ch will effectual y protect the vegetation Without depositing smut on the fruit or leaves.

Systems or methods of smudging now in general use are open to the following objections: .Combustion of the smudge-producing materials is difficult to start, expensive to maintain, andliable to cease beforefull com- 2 5 bustion is completed, thereby failing to effect its urpose and wasting much of the combustib e. Furthermore, the smudge produced, articularly when crude oil is used asa basis as an element in the combustible, is liable go o be of a heavy moist nature, so that it adheres to the fruit, smutting or soiling the same in an objectionable manner, the smut permeating the fruit and imparting an objectionable flavor. a 3 5 The present invention provides for burning a suitable combustible in such manner that the combustion is produced at a relatively high temperature and in a definite-regular manner, so that complete combustion is as- 4 sured. The basis or main element in this combustible is petroleum having the; general nature of California crude oil-that is to say, having a heavy or an asphaltum baseadmixed with constituents of li hter gravity and greater volatility, this fluid combustible being carried on and distributed over a'suitable carrier or vehicle, consisting ofa solid combustible, such as wood or ligneous mate rial, in a suitable state of separation-for .ex-

5 ample, sawdust or shavings, or both.

An object of the present invention is to carry out the combustion of the above-described combustible in such manner that the lighter or more volatile of the constituents will be consumed first and the heavier conb'us tiong The big heat thus attained has at the time when it is most neededfor exv stituents be reserved for the latter part of the combustion and will finally be con- .sumed. Angeles, 1n the county of Los Angeles, State The invention affords the following advantages: The initial combustion of the lighter constituents ives a hot quick fire which ,easily. heats t e whole mass and insures an easy starting and continuance of the com- 6 5 ut c'onduces to ready combustlon andresults in a dry or non-adherent smudge. The final combustion of the heavier constituents produces great quantities of smudge or smoke not only the advan age of heating up the air,

ample, at or about sunriseservin in the first place, to conserve theheat w ich has been generated by the previous combustion and, in the second place, to prevent a Violent or sudden dissipation of the frost which may have fallen on the fruit.

The accompanying drawings show anap paratus suitable for carrying out the method.

Figure l is a partly-broken elevation of a vessel in which the combustion is effected. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section thereof on the line X X in Fig. 1.

1' designates the vessel or pot, which may be of any suitable shapefor example, tubular or cylindricalwith a closed bottom and supported on legs 2. Said vessel is rovided in its side wall With openings or e orations 3, spaced or distributed around t e same and from the upper-to the lower portion thereof, leaving, however, the extreme lower portlon go or the vessel imperforate to form a receptacle I or cup closed at the bottom and sides. The combustible 5, consisting, preferably, of shavings or sawdust in any desirable proportion,- saturated or soaked With crude oil, so as to 9 carry and hold-as much crude oil as will be. contained therein Without running off at ordinary tem erature, is placed in this vessel 1 and ignite at the topl As the combustion proceeds the heat generated thereby warms I the oil in the underlying material, with the result that the more volatile portions thereof are vaporized and passing upward are consunied, while'the heavier or as haltic portions of the oil are rendered s and fluid to cause them to-run down into the lower-portion of the vessel.- 1 :As'the material burns down from thetopt'o the level ofthe successive openings-or erforations in the sides of the vessel the sai openings or perfow I 10 ciently thin Io5 I maintaining the combustion and preventing any choking or extin uishing thereof. The

mineral material or as es 6 contained in the fuel'being unconsumed are gradually accumulated and fall as the fuel burns away and will finally remain in the bottom of the vessel along with the heavier asphaltic portion of the fuel,(indicat ed at 4.) Tnis unconsumed material will then act as a wick or absorbent carrier for the heavier portion or the fuel, feeding and exposing the same to the action of the air in such manner as to maintain the combustion. It is well known that it is difficult to burn such heavy asphaltic material when exposed in liquid form, unless the temerature be greater than can be maintained in a small vessel or unless artificial or force draft be used. The reason of this is that the body of liquid exerts a cooling or dampening efiect on the flame and is'itself so non-volatile that the heat cannotheat it sufficiently when in a compact body 'to generate the vapor necessary for continued combustion; but by roviding the mineral 'Wick above referre to the heavy fluid is ex osed in such manner as to readily take up tiie heat and be continupart of'the mass and allowing access of air thereto as it burns away, to cause {the petroleum at the upper part of the mass to be sepa rated by the heat of the combustion, into a lighter constituent which burns oil and into a 'heavler residuum, and rendering such heavier residuum su'lliciently fluid by the action of heat to cause it to run down into the lower part of the mass, to allow the ashes of the fuel mass to accumulate together with this residuum at the bottom of the mass; and to cause combustion of the residuum by the aid of said ashes acting as a wick.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, atLos Angeles, California, this 1st day of April, 1905.

' GEORGE GRIFFITl-IS. In presence off JOHN C. STEDMAN, f T. H. FAwenT'r. 

